Cavs could have Anderson Varejao in NBA Finals

The Cleveland Cavaliers may have forward-center Anderson Varejao at their disposal during the NBA Finals. Though thought to be done for the season, ESPN.com’s Brian Windhorst stated that the team will potentially have Varejao at the ready for their trip to Oakland next week, only to be deployed if the situation gets dire.

On his most recent edition of “Hey Windy!”, Windhorst said the following:

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I have been told that should a disaster scenario develop, Andy Varejao probably could play. I don’t think it’s smart to activate a player who you don’t think can play, but if there’s an injury—let’s put it this way: The Cavs will pack Varejao’s jersey to go out there.

Varejao has been out since suffering a torn Achilles tendon on Dec. 23 in a matchup against the Timberwolves. He underwent surgery and was ruled out for the season due to typical time frames of such an injury, but it appears his rehabilitation has gone better than expected. Following the injury, the Cavs acquired centers Timofey Mozgov from the Denver Nuggets and Kendrick Perkins following his release, but the shoulder injury sustained by power forward Kevin love has forced head coach David Blatt to alter his frontcourt rotation. It’s unclear how much Varejao would play, if at all, but additional depth is never a bad thing when it comes to winning a seven-game series.

Prior to his injury, Varejao was averaging 9.8 points and 6.5 rebounds in 24 minutes per game. If healthy, he could be expected to provide additional defense as well as a weapon in pick-and-roll situations.